The present invention relates to a print production system for a photographic document.
Generally, a conventional print production system for a photographic document in a small laboratory such as a mini-lab, comprises: an image reading means for obtaining an electronic image by imagewise reading a photographic document; an image display means for displaying a reproduced image of the photographic document which has been read imagewise by the image reading means; a instruction input means for inputting a instruction for a printing condition of the photographic document whose reproduced image has been displayed by the image display means; and a printing means for printing an image onto a printing photographic material from the photographic document, read imagewise by the image reading means, according to a instruction, inputted by the instruction input means, for the printing conditions for the photographic document whose reproduced image has been displayed by the image display means. Generally, a large photographic laboratory has a plurality of these print production systems.
In a conventional print production system, one image display means and one instruction input means are respectively provided for one image reading means and one printing means, and one operator to judge an image, is in charge of the complete operation.
However, there are cases in which the instruction for the printing conditions can not be quickly inputted into the system, depending on the photographic document. In such cases, there is a problem in which printing is delayed by time, during which the operator is worried about input regarding the instruction of printing conditions. Therefore, the printing amount per unit time, or the amount of instruction input per unit time is decreased.
A first object of the present invention is to eliminate or reduce a delay of the printing in a case where the instruction for a printing condition can not quickly input to the system.
Incidentally, recently, it has been desired to achieve cast reductions in order to lower the print price. Accordingly, various types of image evaluation techniques have been developed for unmanned image evaluation. However, a technique for unmanned image evaluation which maintains a high quality level and a high yield in print production has not yet been developed.
Accordingly, the second objective of the present invention is to reduce a member of operators in charge of the image evaluation, thereby reducing labor costs.